www.windaction.org | Pennsylvania

North East wind farm critics to raise concerns
May 6, 2013 by Valerie Myers in Erie Times-News

Texas-based Pioneer Green Energy began leasing property for a commercial wind farm south of Interstate 90 two years ago. Its original plan to build as many as 75 turbines to power about 45,000 homes recently was pared to 10 to 20 turbines, company officials said.

Also filed under [ General]

Against the wind; Public speaks out on proposed wind farm on Jack's Mountain
April 23, 2013 by Dan Pietropaolo in Lewistown Sentinel

The Union Township Planning Commission listened to concerned residents about potential wind turbines being constructed on Jack's Mountain at its Monday night meeting. Volkswind, a German wind farm development company, has not submitted anything to the planning commission.

Also filed under [ General]

North East group wants tight restrictions on wind farms
April 23, 2013 by Valerie Myers in Erie Times-News

The group, called Neighbors for a Responsible North East and led by Matt Putman and Paul Crowe, is lobbying for limits on the size of wind turbines that can be built in the township and a ban on commercial turbines, or windmills, within 1 mile of any neighborhood.

Also filed under [ General]

Pa. wind energy installation double, but produce just 1% of electricity
April 21, 2013 by Associated Press in Trib Live

Some advocates of renewable energy wonder whether Pennsylvania will ever reach the wind energy levels of Iowa and some other leaders. "My view is, probably not," said George Jugovic, president of PennFuture, an environmental group. "I think it's just economics." Jugovic supports wind energy and still believes it will grow here, just not at the scale of other states.

Also filed under [ General]

North East issue isn't if turbines should be regulated, but how
April 16, 2013 by Valerie Myers in Erie Times-News

Matt Putman, of Neighbors for a Responsible North East, said the proposed setbacks are insufficient and are less than some turbine manufacturers recommend. Turbines should be at least 1,300 feet from roads and property lines and more than a mile from any neighborhood to reduce potential noise and "shadow flicker," he said.

Also filed under [ General]

NW Pa. wind farm plan has backers, opponents
April 14, 2013 by The Associated Press in The Evening Sun

Some northwestern Pennsylvania residents want limits placed on the size of wind turbines that can be built in their area and a ban on commercial windmills within a mile of any neighborhood.

Also filed under [ General]

Wind-energy producers eye Bethlehem watershed for turbine farm
February 21, 2013 by Nicole Radzievich in The Morning Call

While the deal would allow Iberdrola up to 10 years to study the area and obtain licenses and permits for the turbines, Repasch said he would likely know which direction the city was heading within five years. The agreement calls for Iberdrola to pay $10,000 a year during the permitting and studying phases and $100,000 a year by the fifth year.

Also filed under [ General]

Lull in orders for Bucks wind-turbine plant
February 2, 2013 by Andrew Maykuth in Philidelphia Inquirer

But after Gamesa completes the order for 25 windmills, around the end of February, there are no other jobs in the pipeline for the company's seven-year-old factory in Fairless Hills. The domestic market for new wind turbines has stalled. "We probably won't see any orders for several months," said David J. Rosenberg, the vice president of marketing for Gamesa.

Also filed under [ General]

Gamesa denies blade responsibility
January 9, 2013 by Karl-Erik Stromsta in Recharge News

Infigen shut down all 40 turbines as a temporary precaution. It is unclear what caused the blade to break ...Infigen and Gamesa have locked horns in the past over the bill for repairs and lost production resulting from various warranty-related disputes

Also filed under [ Safety| Structural Failure]

Wind farm closes after blade snaps off
January 7, 2013 by Kathy Mellott in Tribune-Democrat

A large part of one of the wind turbine blades at Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm broke off over the weekend, forcing the owners to shut down the operation. The blade came off for no apparent reason, said a spokesman for Infigen Energy, which has owned the wind farm for the past several years.

Also filed under [ Safety| Structural Failure]

Wind-power tax credit's extension may not revive plants
January 3, 2013 by Andrew Maykuth in The Inquirer

Exelon Corp., the Chicago parent company of Peco Energy Co. and one of the nation's largest power generators, led opposition to the production tax credit. Though Exelon is also a major wind-farm operator, it opposed the tax credit for distorting energy markets and driving down margins at competitive power producers.

Also filed under [ Tax Breaks & Subsidies| USA]

Hegins Township zoning board denies BP variance application
December 23, 2012 by Vicki Terwilliger in Republican Herald

Zoning board Chairman Larry Umholtz and members Jim Artz and John Johns voted Dec. 12 for the denial, following a hearing that lasted a little more than an hour and included testimony from citizens and BP representatives. About 40 people, including Hegins Township Zoning Officer Allan Swab, attended the hearing held in the Hegins Area Ambulance Association building on Gap Street.

Also filed under [ Zoning/Planning]

Green-energy mandates will hit PA's poorest hardest
December 21, 2012 by Eric Boehm in PA Independent

It requires that 8 percent come from renewable energy resources - like solar and wind - and another 10 percent come from alternative energy sources, including waste coal and large-scale hydroelectric power. The problem for consumers is that those types of energy are more expensive to produce than such traditional types as natural gas or coal.

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

BP variance application denied
December 19, 2012 by Vicki Terwilliger in Citizen Standard

Zoning board Chairman Larry Umholtz, and members Jim Artz and John Johns voted December 12 for the denial, following a hearing that lasted a little more than an hour and included testimony from citizens and BP representatives. ..."We, the board, do not feel BP has shown justification for this variance to be granted."

Also filed under [ General]

Groups gather against tax credit, area wind farms
December 8, 2012 by Dave Sutor in The Tribune Democrat

Along with tax credit fights, the wind industry often faces opposition from conservationists. Save the Mountain contested a plan by Gamesa to put windmills on Shaffer Mountain in Somerset County, a migrating path for hawks, bats and eagles. The group also did not want construction to destroy the hill's pristine wilderness or high-quality trout streams.

Also filed under [ USA]

Wind turbine worker injured near Wellersburg
November 21, 2012 by Alyssa Choiniere in Daily American

A wind turbine contractor was injured at the Twin Ridges Wind Farm in Wellersburg Tuesday afternoon when a large piece of steel fell on him. The Wellersburg fire department and Meyersdale EMS were dispatched at 3:30 p.m., according to Somerset County Control.

Also filed under [ Safety| Injury]

E.ON Sells Half of U.S. Wind Parks to PensionDanmark
October 8, 2012 by Peter Levring in Bloomberg News

EON AG agreed to sell a 50 percent stake in three U.S. wind farms to Danish pension fund PensionDanmark as Germany's biggest utility seeks to free up capital. ..."The return is very similar to what we can get on listed equities, though with a very limited downside risk," thanks to fixed prices negotiated on the power generated by the turbines over the next 15 years."

Also filed under [ General| USA| Texas]

Bats may be given endangered status
August 20, 2012 by Kay Stephens in The Altoona Mirror

Possible measures would include seasonable restrictions on timber cutting in areas with bat maternity sites, restrictions on human entry in areas where bats are hibernating and restrictions on wind turbine operations, also identified in a contributing factor in bat mortalities.

Also filed under [ General]

Federal wind energy credit could expire
July 31, 2012 by Scott Kraus in The Morning Call

"In the past there was more of a calculation by the majority of the developers that it would get extended. There were more of them willing to make that bet and move forward with their projects. The shift in political tone, the increasing gridlock, the harsher rhetoric against incentive for renewable energy, has really had an impact."

Also filed under [ Tax Breaks & Subsidies| USA]

Gamesa to lay off 92 at Bucks plant
July 5, 2012 by Crissa Shoemaker DeBree in Philly Burbs

The news follows a May announcement that Gamesa would halt the installation of a test wind turbine that it had been planning off the coast of Virginia. The company said it was "extremely difficult" to justify the cost of the project due to the lack of a mature offshore wind-energy market in the U.S.

Also filed under [ General]